CX Institutional Raises Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

CX Institutional raised its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 789 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the quarter. CX Institutional’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $370,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $497.13 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $478.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $496.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.80, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.18 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on NOC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 19th. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $550.94.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. The company’s Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic ISR systems and vertical take-off and landing tactical ISR systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems.